Rocky River students head out into the community to gain work experience

ROCKY RIVER, Ohio — A former teacher in the Rocky River City Schools has taken on a new job and title.

Diane Boylan, who retired in June after 37 years, was asked to come back to work on a program that gets kids out into the community for work experience.

“It is part of the Westshore Career Tech program, a consortium,” said Boylan, now the district’s transition program development specialist.

Program coordinator Terri McNeely, also a teacher, is the learning resource services coordinator and intervention specialist. “The idea is that I reach out to various community businesses and ask if there is a need for our students to provide work-related skills in their business.”

The students in the program have special needs. The first businesses allied with the program are the Rocky River Recreation Department and Rocky River/Lakewood Meals on Wheels.

“We had a relationship with Meals on Wheels pre-COVID, so it was a natural place to begin,” said Boylan. “The second was the city’s recreation center. They immediately agreed and we started right away.”

What do the students do at the local businesses?

“At the rec center, we have six to seven high school students who go over and we work with them to wash windows, vacuum entryways, wipe down any surfaces and so on,” McNeely said. “They took off with it and are doing very well.

“Currently, high school students are working with the middle school students, training them to perform the same tasks,” said McNeely. “In both instances, the students have to learn how to treat customers, greet them and move out of their way — basically ‘soft’ skills.

“We do not see our students only in this type of career, but it is the soft skills that will build for whatever the student will do.”

She added: “We as a high school and middle school are teaching them the social skills, as well as the soft skills to perform. We are also managing any anxiety with mindfulness skills and a positive outlook, no matter what the work is.”

Boylan noted that there are federal and state communications asking schools to build transition skills from school to work, “which is a part of our goal-setting for the students. It becomes more formalized at age 14, and Rocky River Schools are committed to introducing the programs to grades 6-8 and grades 9-12.”

She noted that all of the kids participate in Special Olympics throughout the year, with activities such as flag football and track and field with other school districts, “so the transition plan has an educational component, an employment component and independent living — being social and having leisure activities in the community for balance in their lives.”

For the future, said Boylan, “We are looking at more businesses.”

McNeely added: “We created a survey for the students and found some interested in culinary arts, landscaping and automotive.

“For the high school, there is even a grant in the works to have a coffee shop. The idea is in the developmental stage, and we are learning about getting equipment and building shelving. That all evolved from a middle school coffee and tea cart. The students will learn about taking inventory, taking orders and giving good customer service.”

Businesses being sought for student work experience include bakeries, animal care, clerical work and retail. A job coach will accompany the students the entire time they are working.

For more information on the school/work experience program, call Boylan at 216-408-5126.

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